WEBVTT 00:00:03.837 --> 00:00:06.589 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:83% I'm Master Corporal Mitchel McNee from Toronto, Ontario - 00:00:06.589 --> 00:00:08.508 align:middle line:85% position:50% size:103% I'm a Biomedical Electronics Technologist 00:00:08.508 --> 00:00:11.344 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% posted to Central Medical Equipment Depot in Garrison Petawawa. 00:00:12.721 --> 00:00:16.182 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:93% Biomedical Electronics Technologists, or B.E. Techs, 00:00:16.182 --> 00:00:21.187 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% install, maintain and repair the medical, dental and diagnostic equipment 00:00:21.187 --> 00:00:24.566 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:90% in base clinics and field hospitals, and aboard Navy ships. 00:00:25.066 --> 00:00:28.319 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:90% What we do ensures that medical care can be delivered to our soldiers 00:00:28.319 --> 00:00:31.156 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:70% and men and women in uniform when it's required most. 00:00:31.156 --> 00:00:36.119 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:118% You'll work on everything from SPO2 finger probes to large X-ray machines 00:00:36.119 --> 00:00:41.332 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:120% to oxygen generators that you require a forklift to actually lift, move and put in place. 00:00:41.332 --> 00:00:45.336 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:108% You're repairing technology that actually helps people - people need this to survive. 00:00:45.336 --> 00:00:48.715 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:110% Whether or not you do a good job repairing a device could make the difference 00:00:48.715 --> 00:00:53.344 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:123% between life or death for someone who needs to use that device for life-sustaining treatment. 00:00:53.845 --> 00:00:58.975 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:110% At home in Canada, B.E. Techs typically work a normal Monday to Friday work week. 00:00:58.975 --> 00:01:01.394 align:middle line:85% position:50% size:108% As key members of the Health Services team, 00:01:01.394 --> 00:01:04.773 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:90% they ensure the accurate performance of essential medical devices. 00:01:05.356 --> 00:01:08.693 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:105% It's not just the work I do but the people I work with are probably some of the best 00:01:08.693 --> 00:01:12.113 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:110% I've ever had a chance to work with and just the people you meet in the military 00:01:12.113 --> 00:01:14.365 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:63% and the work environment, I find, is pretty great. 00:01:14.741 --> 00:01:18.328 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:93% B.E. Techs are frequently on the road making regular maintenance visits 00:01:18.328 --> 00:01:23.291 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:105% to all Canadian Armed Forces medical establishments across Canada and overseas. 00:01:23.541 --> 00:01:26.669 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:123% So for example, if you're deployed overseas in a Role 2 hospital, 00:01:26.669 --> 00:01:29.798 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% you'll be responsible to know every single piece of kit inside and out. 00:01:29.798 --> 00:01:32.258 align:middle line:85% position:50% size:108% So if at a mission-critical time it breaks, 00:01:32.258 --> 00:01:35.678 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:85% you have to be the one to be able to fix it immediately if possible. 00:01:35.678 --> 00:01:39.015 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:108% One of the big differences, too, with our trade is, if you were working for, 00:01:39.015 --> 00:01:44.312 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:115% say, ACME Biomedical, you might be only working on ventilators or anesthesia machines, 00:01:44.312 --> 00:01:48.358 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:115% where in our trade, you have to know literally every single piece of kit in the military. 00:01:48.358 --> 00:01:53.279 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:118% You don't have the opportunity to be pigeon-holed into one set or type of equipment, 00:01:53.279 --> 00:01:55.990 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:95% you have to be able to know everything and think on your feet, which is, 00:01:55.990 --> 00:02:00.245 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:125% I think, the major difference is just the variety we get, versus the civilian side. 00:02:03.665 --> 00:02:06.584 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% One of the coolest things about being a Biomedical Electronics Tech 00:02:06.584 --> 00:02:08.711 align:middle line:85% position:50% size:103% for the military versus civilian side is, 00:02:08.711 --> 00:02:12.590 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:123% I would've never gotten to fire a rocket launcher working for Toronto General Hospital - 00:02:12.590 --> 00:02:14.175 align:middle line:85% position:50% size:68% and I have in the military. 00:02:14.175 --> 00:02:19.889 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:120% I got to go to Iraq for 40 days to the base in Erbil as we were closing out our Role 2 hospital 00:02:19.889 --> 00:02:23.351 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:73% and I had an absolute blast - it was a great time. 00:02:23.351 --> 00:02:29.482 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:118% I've also had the opportunity to go to Alert, Nunavut, which is the very tippy-top of Canada. 00:02:29.482 --> 00:02:33.653 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% And I had the opportunity to stand on the most northern shore of the country 00:02:33.653 --> 00:02:37.282 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:115% and be the most northern person in the country for at least 5 minutes, which was pretty cool. 00:02:42.829 --> 00:02:47.417 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% On completion of their military training, Biomedical Electronics Technologists 00:02:47.417 --> 00:02:52.171 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:105% get posted to a Canadian Armed Forces base for a full year of on-the-job training 00:02:52.171 --> 00:02:55.758 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:120% under the supervision of a senior Biomedical Electronics Technologist. 00:02:56.509 --> 00:02:58.553 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:83% In your first year as a Biomedical Electronics Tech, 00:02:58.553 --> 00:03:01.598 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:105% you'll be expected to complete your one-year on-the-job training package. 00:03:01.598 --> 00:03:05.059 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% This training package has a checklist of different types of pieces of equipment 00:03:05.059 --> 00:03:08.938 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:123% and procedures that you have to complete in order to be trusted to fix biomedical technology 00:03:08.938 --> 00:03:10.857 align:middle line:85% position:50% size:75% for the Canadian Armed Forces. 00:03:11.107 --> 00:03:15.987 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:118% B.E. Techs are considered deployable as soon as they finish their year of on-the-job training, 00:03:15.987 --> 00:03:19.991 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:113% so they can expect to travel wherever there's equipment that needs maintenance or repair. 00:03:24.829 --> 00:03:27.707 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:110% I would say I'm very proud of the work I do, and I quite like the work I do. 00:03:27.707 --> 00:03:31.210 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:93% I think I'm extremely fortunate to have chosen this career when I did 00:03:31.210 --> 00:03:35.089 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:118% and having joined the military straight after high school and getting college paid for, 00:03:35.089 --> 00:03:37.258 align:middle line:85% position:50% size:90% especially, was extremely fortunate. 00:03:38.384 --> 00:03:44.349 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:118% I've had opportunities that I can certainly say I would have never gotten in civilian life 00:03:44.349 --> 00:03:48.519 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:93% if I were working at a major hospital or a major medical equipment company. 00:03:48.519 --> 00:03:51.189 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:68% I've had the opportunity to run navigation exercises 00:03:51.189 --> 00:03:54.067 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:73% for medical specialists at 1 Canadian Field Hospital, 00:03:54.067 --> 00:03:57.987 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% and had the opportunity to practise my supervisory and public-speaking skills 00:03:57.987 --> 00:04:01.658 align:middle line:79% position:50% size:103% where I might never get a chance to do so if I were working on the civilian side.